Semiconductor device having asymmetric spacer structures

ABSTRACT

A semiconductor device including a semiconductor substrate, agate on the semiconductor substrate, a drain doping region in the semiconductor substrate on a first side of the gate, a source doping region in the semiconductor substrate on a second side of the gate, a first spacer structure on a first sidewall of the gate between the gate and the drain doping region, and a second spacer structure on a second sidewall of the gate between the gate and the source doping region. The first spacer structure is composed of a low-k dielectric layer on the first sidewall of the gate and a first spacer material layer on the low-k dielectric layer. The second spacer structure is composed of a second spacer material layer on the second sidewall of the gate.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The embodiments of the invention generally relate to a semiconductor device, and, more particularly, to a semiconductor FinFET device having a low-k dielectric layer incorporated into the spacer structure on the drain side of the semiconductor FinFET device.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Fin field effect transistors (FinFETs) are non-planar, multi-gate transistors having “fins” that perpendicularly extend from the gate and form the source and the drain of the transistor. Multiple FinFETs may be coupled to one another to provide an integrated circuit device. A conductive layer may be formed over the fins to provide a local interconnect between adjacent FinFETs.

The use of local interconnects enables a higher packing density and reduced R_(SD). However, the formation of the slot contact of the local interconnects increases the parasitic fringe capacitance (C_(of)), which significantly degrades the circuit speed. Therefore, there is a need in this industry to provide an improved semiconductor device that is able to suppress capacitive coupling between the gate and the slot contact.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect, the present invention provides a semiconductor device including a semiconductor substrate, a gate on the semiconductor substrate, a drain doping region in the semiconductor substrate on a first side of the gate, a source doping region in the semiconductor substrate on a second side of the gate, a first spacer structure on a first sidewall of the gate between the gate and the drain doping region, and a second spacer structure on a second sidewall of the gate between the gate and the source doping region. The first spacer structure is composed of a low-k dielectric layer on the first sidewall of the gate and a first spacer material layer on the low-k dielectric layer. The second spacer structure is composed of a second spacer material layer on the second sidewall of the gate. The low-k dielectric layer has a dielectric constant that is smaller than that of the first spacer material layer or the second spacer material layer.

In another aspect, a method for fabricating a semiconductor device is disclosed. A semiconductor substrate is provided. A dummy gate is formed on the semiconductor substrate. The dummy gate has a first sidewall and a second sidewall opposite to the first sidewall. A low-k dielectric layer is formed on the first sidewall of the dummy gate and the semiconductor substrate. A spacer material layer is deposited on the low-k dielectric layer, the second sidewall of the dummy gate, and the semiconductor substrate. The spacer material layer and the low-k dielectric layer are etched to form a first spacer structure on the first sidewall and a second spacer structure on the second sidewall. A drain doping region is formed in the semiconductor substrate adjacent to the first spacer structure. A source doping region is formed in the semiconductor substrate adjacent to the second spacer structure.

These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the embodiments, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate some of the embodiments and, together with the description, serve to explain their principles. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 to FIG. 10 are schematic, cross-sectional diagrams showing an exemplary method for fabricating a semiconductor FinFET device according to one embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 11 is a schematic, perspective view showing a fin structure and a gate structure according to one embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following detailed description of the disclosure, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and in which is shown, by way of illustration, specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention. Other embodiments may be utilized and structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is defined only by the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

One or more implementations of the present invention will now be described with reference to the attached drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout, and wherein the illustrated structures are not necessarily drawn to scale.

Please refer to FIG. 1 to FIG. 11. FIG. 1 to FIG. 10 are schematic, cross-sectional diagrams showing an exemplary method for fabricating a semiconductor FinFET device according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 11 is a schematic, perspective view showing a fin structure and a gate structure according to one embodiment of the invention.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 11, a semiconductor substrate 100 is provided. The semiconductor substrate 100 may comprise single crystalline silicon, SiGe, silicon-on-insulator (SOI), or epitaxial silicon, but is not limited thereto. According to one embodiment of the invention, the semiconductor substrate 100 may comprise a fin structure 100 a that protrudes from a top surface of the surrounding shallow trench isolation (STI) region 110, as can be seen in FIG. 11.

Agate structure 10 may be formed on the semiconductor substrate 100. The gate structure 10 may extend across the fin structure 100 a. According to one embodiment of the invention, the gate structure 10 may comprise a polysilicon layer 110 and a hard mask 112 such as silicon nitride capping the polysilicon layer 110.

It is understood that the gate structure 10 may comprise other materials or layers in other embodiments. According to one embodiment of the invention, the gate structure 10 is a dummy gate and will be replaced with a metal gate in a later stage.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the gate structure 10 may have a top surface 10 a and two opposite sidewalls 10 b and 10 c. According to one embodiment of the invention, the sidewall 10 b is on the drain side (Drain) of the gate structure 10 and the sidewall 10 c is on the source side (Source) of the gate structure 10.

Subsequently, a seal layer 120 is conformally deposited on the top surface 10 a and two opposite sidewalls 10 b and 10 c of the gate structure 10 and on the semiconductor substrate 100. According to one embodiment of the invention, the seal layer 120 may comprise silicon nitride or silicon oxide, but is not limited thereto.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the seal layer 120 may have a thickness ranging between 10 and 50 angstroms, for example, 30 angstroms. According to one embodiment of the invention, the seal layer 120 may be deposited by using chemical vapor deposition (CVD) or atomic layer deposition (ALD) methods, but is not limited thereto.

As shown in FIG. 2, an ion implantation process 200 is performed to implant N-type or P-type dopants into the semiconductor substrate 100. Thereafter, an anneal process such as a rapid thermal process (RTP) is performed to thereby form a first lightly doped drain (LDD) region 101 on the drain side (Drain) of the gate structure 10 and a second LDD region 102 on the source side (Source) of the gate structure 10. The first LDD region 101 is adjacent to the sidewall 10 b and the second LDD region 102 is adjacent to the sidewall 10 c. The first and second LDD regions 101 and 102 may be N-type or P-type depending upon the types of the semiconductor FinFET device.

As shown in FIG. 3, a low-k dielectric layer 130 is conformally deposited on the gate structure 10 and on the semiconductor substrate 100. According to one embodiment of the invention, the low-k dielectric layer 130 is deposited on the seal layer 120 and is in direct contact with the seal layer 120.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the low-k dielectric layer 130 may have a dielectric constant that is smaller than or equal to 5.0. According to another embodiment of the invention, the low-k dielectric layer 130 may have a dielectric constant ranging between 0 and 4.0. According to still another embodiment of the invention, the low-k dielectric layer 130 may have a dielectric constant ranging between 0 and 3.0.

For example, the low-k dielectric layer 130 may comprise silicon oxycarbonitride (SiOCN), silicon carbide (SiC), or black diamond, but is not limited thereto. According to one embodiment of the invention, the low-k dielectric layer 130 may be deposited by using CVD or ALD methods, but is not limited thereto.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the low-k dielectric layer 130 may have a thickness ranging between 50 and 100 angstroms, for example, 70 angstroms. In another embodiment, the seal layer 120 may comprise low-k dielectric materials. In this case, the above-mentioned low-k dielectric layer 130 may be spared.

As shown in FIG. 4, a lithographic process and etching process are performed to partially remove the low-k dielectric layer 130 from the source side (Source) of the gate structure 10, while leaving the low-k dielectric layer 130 on the drain side (Drain) of the gate structure 10 intact. In a case that the seal layer 120 is a low-k dielectric layer (the low-k dielectric layer 130 is spared), the seal layer 120 is partially removed from the source side (Source) of the gate structure 10.

After removing the low-k dielectric layer 130 from the source side (Source) of the gate structure 10, the seal layer 120 on the sidewalls 10 c of the gate structure 10 and on the second LDD region 102 is exposed. A portion of the seal layer 120 on the top surface 10 a of the gate structure 10 may be exposed. The remaining low-k dielectric layer 130 a is disposed only on the drain side (Drain) of the gate structure 10 and does not cover the sidewall 10 c of the gate structure 10.

As shown in FIG. 5, a spacer material layer 140 is then deposited on the remaining low-k dielectric layer 130 a, on the seal layer 120 on the sidewall 10 c of the gate structure 10, and on the semiconductor substrate 100. The spacer material layer 140 conformally covers the remaining low-k dielectric layer 130 a, the gate structure 10, and the semiconductor substrate 100. On the drain side (Drain) of the gate structure 10, the spacer material layer 140 is not in direct contact with the seal layer 120. On the source side (Source) of the gate structure 10, the spacer material layer 140 is in direct contact with the seal layer 120.

For example, the spacer material layer 140 may comprise silicon nitride or silicon carbonitride, but is not limited thereto. According to one embodiment of the invention, the spacer material layer 140 may be deposited by using CVD or ALD methods, but is not limited thereto. According to one embodiment of the invention, the spacer material layer 140 may have a thickness ranging between 50 and 100 angstroms, for example, 80 angstroms.

As shown in FIG. 6, subsequently, the spacer material layer 140 and the low-k dielectric layer 130 a are etched in an anisotropic manner, thereby forming a first spacer structure 11 on the sidewall 10 b and a second spacer structure 12 on the sidewall 10 c of the gate structure 10. The first spacer structure 11 and the second spacer structure 12 have different film structure, thereby forming an asymmetric spacer configuration.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the first spacer structure 11 comprises a first seal layer 120 a on the sidewall 10 b of the gate structure 10, low-k dielectric layer 130 a directly on the first seal layer 120 a, and a first spacer material layer 140 a directly on the low-k dielectric layer 130 a. The second spacer structure 12 comprises a second seal layer 120 b on the sidewall 10 c of the gate structure 10 and a second spacer material layer 140 b directly on the second seal layer 120 b. The low-k dielectric layer 130 a has a dielectric constant that is smaller than that of the first spacer material layer 140 a or the second spacer material layer 140 b.

According to one embodiment of the invention, after forming the first spacer structure 11 and the second spacer structure 12, the top surface of the hard mask 112 may be exposed. According to one embodiment of the invention, the etching process may continue to etch the semiconductor substrate 100 in a self-aligned manner, thereby forming a first recess 100 b adjacent to the first spacer structure 11 and a second recess 100 b adjacent to the second spacer structure 12.

It is noteworthy that since the first spacer structure 11 has a bottom thickness that is greater than that of the second spacer structure 12, the distance between an edge of the first recess 100 b and the sidewall 10 b is greater than the distance between an edge of the second recess 100 c and the sidewall 10 c. It is noteworthy that the first LDD region 101 that is situated directly under the first spacer structure 11 has a width that is greater than that of the second LDD region 102 that is situated directly under the second spacer structure 12 (w₁>w₂).

As shown in FIG. 7, an epitaxial growth process is then carried out to form a first epitaxial layer 103 in the first recess 100 b and a second epitaxial layer 104 in the second recess 100 c. According to one embodiment of the invention, the first epitaxial layer 103 and the second epitaxial layer 104 may comprise SiP, SiC, or SiGe, but is not limited thereto.

As shown in FIG. 8, after forming the first epitaxial layer 103 and the second epitaxial layer 104, an ion implantation process is carried out to form a drain doping region 105 in the semiconductor substrate 100 adjacent to the first spacer structure 11 and a source doping region 106 in the semiconductor substrate 100 adjacent to the second spacer structure 12.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the conductivity type of the drain doping region 105 and the source doping region 106 may be identical to the conductivity type of the first LDD region 101 and the second LDD region 102, but is not limited thereto. According to one embodiment of the invention, the drain doping region 105 and the source doping region 106 are typically heavily doped regions that have doping concentration greater than that of the first LDD region 101 and the second LDD region 102.

Subsequently, a contact etch stop layer (CESL) 150 is conformally deposited over the semiconductor substrate 100. The contact etch stop layer 150 covers the drain doping region 105, the source doping region 106, the first spacer material layer 140 a, and the second spacer material layer 140 b.

As shown in FIG. 9, an inter-layer dielectric (ILD) layer 160 is deposited on the contact etch stop layer 150. The ILD layer 160 may comprise silicon oxide, silicon nitride, the like, or a combination thereof. The ILD layer 160 may be formed by CVD, a high-density plasma (HDP), the like, or a combination thereof. The ILD layer 160 may be planarized to a top surface of the gate structure 10. For example, the ILD layer 160 may be planarized by using a CMP to remove an upper portion of the ILD layer 160. According to one embodiment of the invention, the ILD layer 160, the contact etch stop layer 150, the first spacer structure 11, and second spacer structure 12 are planarized, thereby exposing the gate structure 10.

The hard mask 112 and the polysilicon layer 110 are removed to form a gate trench. A metal gate 310 may be formed within the gate trench by using conventional replacement metal gate (RMG) processes. Optionally, a hard mask 312 may be formed within the gate trench on the metal gate 310. A semiconductor FinFET device 1 is completed.

As shown in FIG. 10, an inter-layer dielectric (ILD) layer 170 is deposited on the ILD layer 160 and the semiconductor FinFET device 1. A first slot contact 41 is formed in the ILD layer 170 and the ILD layer 160 to electrically couple to the drain doping region 105. A second slot contact 42 is formed in the ILD layer 170 and the ILD layer 160 to electrically couple to the source doping region 106.

The present invention is advantageous over the prior art because the semiconductor FinFET device 1 comprises a low-k dielectric layer 130 a incorporated into the first spacer structure 11 on the drain side of the semiconductor FinFET device 1. The low-k dielectric layer 130 a is interposed between the first spacer material layer 140 a and the metal gate 310. The low-k dielectric layer 130 a have low dielectric constant (k≤5.0) and is able to suppress the parasitic fringe capacitance (C_(of)), thereby improving the device performance.

Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device and method may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and bounds of the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A semiconductor device, comprising: a semiconductor substrate; a gate on the semiconductor substrate; a drain doping region in the semiconductor substrate on a first side of the gate; a source doping region in the semiconductor substrate on a second side of the gate; a first spacer structure on a first sidewall of the gate between the gate and the drain doping region, wherein the first spacer structure comprises a low-k dielectric layer on the first sidewall of the gate and a first spacer material layer on the low-k dielectric layer, a first seal layer between the gate and the low-k dielectric layer, wherein the first seal layer is in direct contact with the low-k dielectric layer; and a second spacer structure on a second sidewall of the gate between the gate and the source doping region, wherein the second spacer structure comprises a second spacer material layer on the second sidewall of the gate, a second seal layer between the gate and the second spacer material layer, wherein the second seal layer is in direct contact with the second spacer material layer, wherein the low-k dielectric layer has a dielectric constant that is smaller than that of the first spacer material layer or the second spacer material layer, wherein the semiconductor device is a singular device.
 2. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the first seal layer comprises silicon nitride and the second seal layer comprises silicon nitride.
 3. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the low-k dielectric layer is in direct contact with the first spacer material layer.
 4. The semiconductor device according to claim 1 further comprising a contact etch stop layer covering the first spacer material layer and the second spacer material layer, wherein the contact etch stop layer has a horizontal section covering an entire top surface of a first epitaxial layer.
 5. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the contact etch stop layer comprises silicon nitride.
 6. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the dielectric constant of the low-k dielectric layer is smaller than or equal to
 5. 7. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the low-k dielectric layer comprises silicon oxycarbonitride (SiOCN) or black diamond.
 8. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the first spacer material layer comprises silicon nitride or silicon carbonnitride.
 9. The semiconductor device according to claim 8, wherein the second spacer material layer comprises silicon nitride or silicon carbonnitride.
 10. The semiconductor device according to claim 1 further comprising a first lightly doped drain (LDD) region directly under the first spacer structure and a second lightly doped drain (LDD) region directly under the second spacer structure. 